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Spring is in the air and we all know what that means. Time to put away your winter clothes, air out your spring attire, and clean house. Just about every spring I go through my closet and look for any items of clothing that I have not worn in the last year and I give them away. It’s just my little yearly ritual that forces me to evaluate what has been useful to me, and what has not. This year as I am preparing to go through my closet and garage, I want to do not only a sweep of my physical possessions, but in other areas as well. When it comes to certain people that I deal with or do business with, let’s say like my lawn guy, I tend to be what I like to call “lazy loyal”. Is he the best at what he does? No he is not. Am I one hundred percent satisfied with his work? Not by a long shot. Are there dozens of other landscaping companies that I could use? The number is endless. But, what do I do? I stick with him loyally and faithfully because I am too lazy or unwilling to do the work required to get better service. So now I begin to wonder if this is something I do in other areas of my life? Are there friendships, associates, and other connections that I maintain simply out of convenience? These are truths that I think each person should ask of himself or herself on a regular basis…perhaps even more than once a year.

We could have quality and meaningful relationships whether friendship, romantic, or business, but we stick with those who have been around for a while, not because we need them, but because we don’t have the courage to start again. We stay on the job not because we absolutely love it and feel fulfilled by it, but because it’s too much work and quite frankly kind of scary, to launch out or follow our dreams. We could boast about being loyal to people, organizations, or ideas but the truth is that our loyalty can sometimes be rooted in laziness. This year as you clean out your home or external temple, take time to evaluate your internal one as well and make sure that everything and everyone is operating at the highest level of functionality and purpose. If not, it’s time to ditch the lazy loyal mentality, clean house and make some real changes.

I can still recall my tween-age days when my older sister, Rocky, and I would be in our room practicing for a duet “special” we would do on an upcoming Sunday morning service at church. Amy Grant, Sandi Patti, Crystal Lewis, the late 80’s and 90’s great contemporary Christian songs, how we loved their songs and we loved to sing their songs. As much as we loved the Lord and loved singing, we’d find ourselves clashing at some point. It never failed. Every single time some disagreement would arise regarding who was singing what line, or how we should do it. Then one of us would raise our voices or storm out, run and tell mom and dad that, “We don’t want to sing on Sunday anymore! She’s not listening to me. She’s not letting me sing the line I want to sing!” I recall my parents’ reaction every single time. It went something like, “Mijas (my little daughters), you aren’t singing for each other or other people, you are doing it unto the Lord. Go back and keep practicing. You’ll do great, it will be awesome.”

You know what? They were right. It was a blessing every time. God would use our songs to touch hearts and glorify Him. The immediate release and relief we felt after was so rewarding because we knew God heard us. Wow, good times! You know I experience this process as a grown up to this day. I was just reminded of it when I felt like I “hit a wall” so to speak with my job. I raise money for an amazing organization. Essentially, I am the bridge between a donor and the field (which includes those who are in need of the basics of life). I pretty much get paid for praying with, talking to, and building relationships with people. Really, I get paid to be me.

The Bible says in Colossians 3:23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Sometimes I don’t see eye to eye with my colleagues, superiors, and those I serve. The wall I hit leaves me silently angry and I want to run to mom and dad and say, “I don’t want to do it anymore. They aren’t listening to me. They’re not doing it my way!” My Heavenly Father gently reminds me of my parents’ encouragement, which really is encouragement straight from the word of God. So here I go back to my desk, back to the phone knowing full well that I don’t do this work just for a paycheck. I work as unto the Lord, and in Him I find my reward.

Take just a moment and pause on this phrase. If something is to grow, it has to be covered and protected in an environment that nurtures what is necessary for it to become bigger than the seed itself. What are you covering that is causing you to grow weariness in your life? What seeds are being nurtured under the surface that is feeding the feeling of doubt and hopelessness? As women we can very easily cover the seed of disappointment, hurt, rejection, etc. and from the outside everything looks good but the Bible cautions us to not grow weary. Growth is an interesting facet of life. You can’t see it all too easily with the naked eye but it’s a process where every moment contributes to its increase. What are you trusting God for that seems as though you’re constantly getting the “red light” or a flashing neon sign that screams at you, “Not now”? It can be difficult to wait for a promise to be fulfilled but just like natural growth, the spirit of weariness can grow and develop without ever “seeing” it take place. You know how it goes, ladies. You stay busy with your work, your family, and your hobbies so you don’t have to think about those unfulfilled promises and if you’re not careful you’ll entertain thoughts of doubt and discouragement and within time it produces the fruit of weariness. Have you ever been so tired and fatigued that nothing made sense? Your vision was blurry and your words lacked meaning? When our spirits our weary, our vision is affected, we speak from our situation or how we feel versus the Word and there isn’t much that makes sense to us in those moments. So then, how can we guard ourselves from growing weary?

As a man THINKETH so is he (or she). Your thought life is like a GPS, whatever information you choose to input into the program determines the direction of your journey.

2) Be mindful of your company.

Ever heard the saying, “Misery loves company”? Some people find pleasure in wallowing in self- pity and apathy tends to be the greatest form of entertainment and excitement. Be cautious of this. To bring balance to this, be mindful of those who are only “yes” people in your life but dare not caution you of the bigger picture. It is imperative to have those in your life that can encourage you and speak the truth in love so that there is a healthy balance. My mom had a friend who was excellent at this. Whenever my mom was facing a hardship her friend, who was also my godmother, would tell her, “Cry about it…go ahead…cry! Get it out of your system”. Then when she was done she would say, “Okay, we’re done now, what do we do to fix it and move on?” I love that! If you only cry and never move to a solution, you’ll exhaust not only yourself but also everyone around you. However if you NEVER cry and confront the hurt, or disappointment, you’ll grow weary from the weight and pressure building behind the scenes.

3) Watch that mouth!

There is creative power in our words. We have the ability to produce life or death by what we say. Guard your words and if it is not edifying, it is not worth wasting breath on. Not only do we need to be mindful of what we say but also mindful of what others speak over our life! Words create “worlds”. For example, if you continue to say you’re tired, the more you say it, the more tired you become. Confession is powerful!

4) Find your strength in Him.

In His presence there is FULNESS OF JOY (Psalm 16:11) and we know that we obtain our strength through the joy He provides! (Nehemiah 8:10) Be encouraged ladies, God is faithful to His promises! Write these power verses down and feed your faith and watch doubt, defeat and weariness die! Psalm 28:7 (Amplified Bible) “The Lord is my Strength and my [impenetrable] Shield; my heart trusts in, relies on, and confidently leans on Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song will I praise Him.” Psalm 84:11 (Amplified Bible) “For the Lord God is a Sun and Shield; the Lord bestows [present] grace and favor and [future] glory (honor, splendor, and heavenly bliss)! No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” Galatians 6:9 (Amplified Bible) “And let us not lose heart and grow weary and faint in acting nobly and doing right, for in due time and at the appointed season we shall reap, if we do not loosen and relax our courage and faint.”

I truly believe that raising a Godly family brings glory to God. HE has entrusted us to take care of His children and family. We are to take this job seriously. I know there can be a lot of sacrifices in raising a family but it is definitely worth the investment. As the Graber Family, we’ve made up five family values that we want to live by:

1. Honor God with our words and actions.

2. Love each other.

3. Honor your parents.

4. Forgive others.

5. Always do your best.

We have these values framed to remind us what we stand for as a family and how important God is at the center. Teaching them in God’s ways will sow seeds into your family and to the next generation and next. “Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that.” (Ecclesiastes 11:6) There are expectations that we teach our children that help guide them into the future. For our family we have taught our children first time obedience where they need to listen to us the first time and not waiting to count to three to finally do it. We expect them to honor us by obeying right away when we ask them to do something. This is also a form of respect so that when someone else in authority asks them to do something, they will respond in the same way. Respect and honor is huge in our family and we expect them to treat their siblings in love and respect as well. Treating others, as we would want to be treated is a golden rule that we live by and loving God and others as stated in the greatest commandment, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself.” These teachings take time and consistency as parents. It is worth the investment to see your reward of respectful kids. It is just not respect for people but for property as well. We have taught our kids not to litter and to pick up someone else’s litter if we see it. Also we expect them to leave things in order the same way it was when we arrived to a certain place. This could be at a restaurant, friend’s house, the pool, any place it is respectful to leave that place better than how we arrived. These examples are just a few of our expectations that sow seeds into a Godly character. Investing the time into parenting is priceless and you will see the reward as you raise up the next generation. Putting forth the hard work and effort towards your family is worth the investment. Don’t grow weary, as you will reap the harvest of Godly children, which is pleasing to God!

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